The Weekend Retreat

The Van Ness siblings are coming together at their estate in the luscious wine country. It is a birthday celebration for the twins of the Van Ness clan. But it soon becomes clear there is more going on than a big party. And it may include murder!

Let me just say, I did not like a single character in this book. And usually that means I will DNF it. But there was something about this book that kept me reading. The tensions, the secrets, the lies….all come together to make a pretty, dad-blame good read. And the ending…well you need to read this to find out!

Need a good family drama with a kick…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

Tara Laskowski's newest novel, The Weekend Retreat, appealed to me because of the setting of a family winery in the Finger Lakes region. (I grew up in the Finger Lakes region and I love a good winery.)

The novel takes place during the wealthy Van Ness family's annual birthday celebration for Richard and his twin sister Harper, along with their spouses and younger brother Zach who is bringing along his new girlfriend whom no one has yet met.

The recent death of the Van Ness matriarch looms large over the gathering. She was tough-bordering-on-emotionally abusive on all her children, especially her daughter Harper. Richard's wife Elle has taken over the reigns planning the perfect birthday weekend retreat, one that would please her show more mother-in-law.

Things turn ugly as everyone turns on each other and someone on the outside of this heavily secured fortress has designs on getting revenge on the family- but why? Everyone has secrets they are hiding, secrets that can destroy the family. When a torrential rainstorm plunges the estate in darkness something deadly this way comes.

The Weekend Retreat has a real Succession vibe as the characters are generally unlikeable rich people with a parent who treated them cruelly at times. (The rich- they're like us. Not really.) There are lots of twists, some you'll see coming, some that will take you by surprise. The book has been called "Succession meets Agatha Christie" and that is an apt description. It's a good book to read on a rainy weekend curled up under a blanket with a cold glass of Riesling.

Thanks to Harlequin for putting me on their Fall 2023 Blog Tour. show less

Intriguing Tale With Multiple (And Rapidly Switching) Character POVs. This is one of those tales with a lot of moving parts and a lot of different character POVs that can throw some people off. So if that is you, know up front that this is the style Ms. Laskowski has chosen to tell this particular tale in. Specifically, we have three couples - each of the surviving children of a now deceased former matron of the family their significant others, as well as a seventh person - an unannounced and unplanned guest. (The final central character is another, planned, guest.) The tale uses the perspectives of each of the three females the unplanned guest as our narrative device, and ultimately it tells a strong tale of family secrets, petty show more grudges, and everything else that makes a family so complex at times. Here, the book truly shines - and yes, it is helped by its stormy, near gothic mansion (complete with hidden passages and rooms!) setting. The prologue is particularly strong, drawing the reader in and urging them to find out what exactly happened on this eventful weekend among siblings (and their partners), and the overall mysteries are much deeper than are originally thought, adding to the depth and complexity of the tale.

Overall Ms. Laskowski did a truly great job telling this story in this particular format, even as confusing as the frequent perspective jumps can be at times - she also used them to great effect to propel the reader forward in an "I've GOT to see what happens next!" manner. Yes, after an admittedly somewhat slow start, this will eventually become one of those that you're going to want to stay up later than you probably should to finish the book.

Those looking to end 2023 with a bang would do well to pick this book up, as it releases just in time to be many peoples' final book of 2023. Very much recommended. show less

The Weekend Retreat by Tara Laskowski is a highly recommended mystery where a family gathering quickly deteriorates.

The Van Ness family traditionally gathers together at their Finger Lakes winery estate to celebrate the birthdays of Richard and Harper. It is their 35th birthday this year so they are there along with their spouses, Elle and Lucas, as well as younger brother Zach and his girlfriend Lauren. Richard is an attorney, Harper runs a failing online cosmetics company while Lucas had a successful tech company. Elle plans the weekend as she feels their mother, who recently passed away, would have. The siblings all take her for granted. Zach has been just their playboy younger brother and he's brought girlfriends to the estate show more before.

Readers know from the opening news story that one person, possibly two have died. This is a locked-room mystery where all the players are trapped on the estate and a big storm is coming. None of the characters are particularly likeable and several are actively self-centered and disagreeable. They are all carrying resentments and jealousies from the past. None of these people like each other and they all have secrets.

The narrative is told through the point-of-view of different of family members and one unnamed party guest. All the infighting, secrets, and attitudes between family members keeps the action interesting as does the creepy setting. The setting includes secret rooms and basement tunnels in the mansion, gifts from an unknown person, an approaching storm, and a vineyard at night which all work together to increase the apprehension. Those who carefully read the novel will know who the unnamed guest is so the real mystery is what ultimately happens. 3.5 rounded up

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Graydon House via Edelweiss.
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An annual birthday party gone wrong.

The Van Ness family is celebrating their annual birthday bash for the twins at their mansion.

This year was no different, except for the death of their mother and the addition of Zach’s soon-to-be fiancé.

But what can go wrong and does go wrong with this year's celebration?

PLENTY!!

Each sibling has some secret.

Who has the worst secret and who will survive the weekend?

And...who is the unidentified guest who seems to be planning some disaster?

A very character-driven novel that has a slow buildup, but once ALL the secrets and conniving characters are revealed you won't be able to turn the pages fast enough to find out what happens. 4/5

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions are show more my own. show less